Saturday, April 19, 2008

Bhimili

In India, there are mainly two kinds of architectural heritage that receive attention, the “Indian” heritage and the “Colonial” heritage, the latter mostly in the form of public buildings. There are government agencies, professional bodies, and concerned individuals working to conserve some of this urban heritage. On the other hand, there are many, many small towns spread all over the vast country that have quaint and historic streets which remain obscure and neglected. These are streets lined with hundred-year-old, tile-roofed houses that hold a record of the history of the place.


The houses are also a record of the indigenous building skills that have evolved over time, but they are now being demolished to be replaced by modern concrete constructions. The price of the land is now higher and more important than the price or the historic value of the house that sits on it.
Bimilipatnam is one such town near Visakhapatnam on the east coast of India. It was a historical trading town, whose importance diminished as a new port was developed in Visakhapatnam, 25 km away. Bimili is the second oldest municipality in the country. It has some English, some Dutch, and some Indian heritage.

Bimilipatnam having once been a Dutch settlement, the Netherlands embassy was willing to be part of an initiative which would involve the residents of the town, the Andhra Pradesh government, and local non-governmental organizations for its development with a view to restore and preserve the architectural and natural heritage of the town.

4 comments:

peter rudd said...

beautiful photo of the port building. i lived in a dutch house in visag years ago and am looking for pictures ...
nice blog
peter

Indian Bazaars said...

Peter,
In Vizag, the Visakha museum on beach road is said to be originally a Dutch house. The residential area around it is referred to as the Dutch house layout. I wondered if that was the house you lived in?
kiran

Ramani said...

Hello Kiran,

Compliments on your lovely picture of the Dutch building, taken from a unique angle. I write a blog called The History of Vizag "heavydutytravel.blogspot.com". It covers the history of both Visakhapatnam and Bhimili. I was wondering if I could use your picture in my blog.

Ramani

Indian Bazaars said...

Ramani, Sure, you can use the picture. Thanks for dropping by.